Thursday, May 21, 2015

Why do women travel solo..


Love this video to bits. Amazingly close to my heart. <3 

How did I start traveling alone? When I realized it's gonna be tough for my friends to take leave during the same period as me as we're all in the same company (even though it's an MNC and we're in different departments). 

How did I feel when trying to convince my parents to let me travel alone? I didn't! =P I told little white lies example.. That my friend and I were going together but last minute a couple of days before she had to work so she couldn't make it but the tickets were bought and accomodation paid for so it'll be a waste if I couldn't go. =D 

How was my first experience of travelling alone? Nothing short of AMAZING! I never wanted to turn back the plane/bus that I was on and the thought of going home actually agitated me. The only downside was I didn't know how much/what currency to change (not enough research) hence a little tight on cash. =P 

How did I prepare myself for the solo trips that came after I was addicted? Research research and more research. I knew what kinda experiences I was looking for. What kinda accomodation I wanted to stay in. Some of the places I wanted to see. So I just did more homework around it! =) 

Was it ever daunting to be travelling alone? Never! I was never happier than to be alone. Maybe due to work I'm seen more as an extrovert but I know deep down I'm an introvert. I can go for weeks without speaking to anyone unless to order food. Coz I tried. =) 

No fears at all? None! I'm a little surprised at myself too. But the only fear would be that I didn't bring enough cash to enjoy myself I guess. =P sleeping eating and wandering alone became such a norm after a short while. And I continued doing it on my own even when I'm not travelling and back in Singapore. 

So.. Did it teach you anything? Independence. Courage. Cautiousness. 

And one thing you enjoy most about travelling alone? Freedom - from doing what you want at your own pace without needing to care about what others think! =D

Friday, April 17, 2015

Sipping my tea..



Amidst a busy/packed day. I decided to squeeze in time for a local breakfast (ok ok.. I had cravings for it ok?) 

It's not often that you'll find a coffee shop with alfresco dining by the roadside playing 90s music and with breakfast that cost S$2.50 - a toast. 2 soft boiled eggs and a mug of teh-o. And what's more? It's at the fringe of a party central/business district - Circular Road's BK eating house. 

So I sit facing the road and sipping my tea. Letting the cars zoom past me. I've never been happier. =)

Sunday, March 22, 2015

The purpose in life..

It's been a long time since I'm here blogging. Most of the time I just share photos and articles. But this morning. I was reading an article in the newspaper which was talking about how a girl quit her job to travel and find herself. And it got me thinking. 

A little background about the article. This girl's a Uni graduate and came out to work in the corporate world. She got tired of climbing the corporate ladder and wanted to find herself. So she took off to Guatemala for 3 weeks. Hoping to find what she really wanted in life. There she met travellers who are as lost as her and did not know what they wanted to do with their lives either. Until she met a yoga instructor (who is now her boyfriend) and she opened a restaurant there and an agency helping others to look for jobs for Spanish teachers. That was 4 years ago that she left Singapore and she seems to have found her purpose in life. 

What I want to share here is this. If you want to find yourself. You do not need to leave the corporate world. Neither does it guarantee that once you leave and travel you will be able to find yourself. And I strongly disagree with the fact that travellers are lost. I have met and known travellers who know exactly why they are travelling. And travellers who are travelling to find themselves - but not lost. 

I've a full time job and in the corporate world. I face the corporate ladder and dog-eats-dog world every day. But do I know what I want to do with my life? I do. I know that this job I have now allows me to earn enough to continue travelling when I have the time. But it doesn't mean that I lose myself when I stop travelling. 

In the 9 years that I am in this full time job of mine. I travel. I travel to places that I grew up dreaming of. Never thinking they will come true one day. I travel alone. Living by the day.

Travelling opened up my eyes to the places beyond the horizon. It made me come back more appreciative of what I have and taught me things that education did not.

One of the first few places I travelled to alone.. Malacca, Malaysia.

Another one of the first few places I travelled to alone.. Taken at the foot of Mount Phousi, Luang Prabang, Laos. 

I didn't only take the less trodden path. But I splurged once in a while when I went to DisneyLand in Hong Kong. Universal Studios in Osaka. DisneySea in Tokyo. Of course with every splurge it came with a price. But have I ever regretted spending more money than what I brought over? Never. I worked so hard back home. Why shouldn't I treat myself a little better when I'm away?

With Mickey in DisneySea, Tokyo! 

I learnt to appreciate the beauty of Mother Nature. Especially when I started backpacking to The Philippines.


Kids playing on the sand bank in Batanyan Island, Cebu, Philippines. 

A 8 hours banca ride from Coron to El Nido, Philippines. 

Sunrise in Angkor Wat, Siem Reap, Cambodia.

I made new friends along the way and hung out with them.. Just like a local. =) 

My friend and I sitting on the ledge of a waterfall in Siquijor, Philippines. 

And a family and me rafting away in Bali, Indonesia.

 I went to places that I never even dreamed of sometimes. Learning the ways as I go along. 

On top of one of the 5 peaks in Mount Hua Shan, Xi'an, China.

Floating down the Yellow River on a pig skin raft, China.

Drinking horse wine - neat - once we got down the bus in Inner Mongolia, China. 

And to fulfill my dream of getting to Tibet. I planned and on a whim. Signed up for the tour and off I went! My first destination that was crossed off my bucket list! 
Beautiful beautiful Lin Zhi, Tibet, China. 

Of course a visit and climb to the Potala Palace is a given! Lhasa, Tibet. 

Another place on my bucket list was to backpack to Sri Lanka. I love the hospitality. The people. The nature. What I didn't really enjoy was the food.. Coz I came back home and swore off Indian food for a good 9 months!

Sunrise from our 'tent' in Madulkele, Kandy, Sri Lanka. Across us was the Knuckles Range. Breathtaking!

Finally seeing the fishermen on stilts in Galle, Sri Lanka!

Just not too long ago. I took a 3 weeks break and went back to the Philippines and decided that after procrastinating for so long. It's time to pick up scuba diving. Never have I accomplished something that I'm so proud of. Till the extent that I'm thinking of doing the divemaster course too!

My Open Water session in Camiguin, Philippines.

Fish feeding in process in Batangas, Philippines.

Heading down into the unknown off White Island in Camiguin, Philippines.

And seeing a white tip reef shark so close while down under in Maldives is the icing on the cake!

I learnt. Through backpacking and staying in hostels. And through driving on road trips. I don't need to leave the corporate world to find my purpose in life. I know what I want and I go for it!